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INFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the text directly from the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter face, while others may be from any type of computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand corner and continuing from left to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back of the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Higher quality 6" x 9" black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. University Microfilms International A Bell & Howell Information Company 300 North Zeeb Road. Ann Arbor. Ml 48106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 Order Number 1345736 Musicals often demonstrate the cultural aspects of the periods in which they were written Dowd, James M., M.A. The American University, 1991 Copyright ©1991 by Dowd, James M. All rights reserved. UMI 300N.ZeebRd. Ann Aibor, MI 48106 MUSICALS OFTEN DEMONSTRATE THE CULTURAL ASPECTS OF THE PERIODS IN WHICH THEY WERE WRITTEN by James M. Dowd submitted to the Faculty of the College of Arts and Sciences of The American University in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Arts in Arts Management Signatures of Committee: Cha i r: < L . the College l3 Jaw, m/ Date 1991 The American University _ _ Washington, D.C. 20016 THE AMERICAN UNIVERSITY LIBRARY @ COPYRIGHT by JAMES M. DOWD 1991 ALL RIGHTS RESERVED MUSICALS OFTEN DEMONSTRATE THE CULTURAL ASPECTS OF THE PERIODS IN WHICH THEY WERE WRITTEN BY James M. Dowd ABSTRACT The American musical theatre is one of the few art forms truly native to this country. As such, it represents popular American thought and serves as a barometer of the various attitudes and feelings held throughout the twentieth century. An analysis of the scripts and scores of important works of musical theatre will help in understanding the nature of popular thought during different historical periods. Three musicals have been analyzed in this thesis: Of Thee I Sing, by George and Ira Gershwin, Oklahoma by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, and Company by Stephen Sondheim. Each was chosen for two reasons: because it represents one of the most important works within a respective period, and because each period represented a particularly troubling time - the Great Depression, World War II, and the social turmoil of the late 1960's. TABLE OF CONTENTS CHAPTER I. INTRODUCTION ................................ 1 II. THE ORIGINS OF THE AMERICAN MUSICAL THEATRE . 5 III. OF THEE I SING: THE GERSHWINS RESPOND TO THE GREAT DEPRESSION.............................. 22 IV. THE WAR YEARS: RODGERS AND HAMMERSTEIN CELEBRATE AMERICA ............................ 34 V. STEPHEN SONDHEIM QUESTIONS MIDDLE CLASS VALUES ........................................ 45 VI. CONCLUSION .................................. 58 BIBLIOGRAPHY ........................................... 62 iii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION This thesis discusses the relationship between attitudes reflected in the in American popular culture, during different historical periods from 1930 to 1970, and the attitudes reflected in some of the most significant pieces of musical theatre of the periods. Three musicals have been chosen for analysis: Of Thee I Sing, rooted in the Depression era; Oklahoma, an adaption of a 1928 script which provided insight into the war years of the 1940's; and Company reflecting attitudes about the social turmoil of the late 1960's. The meaning of the term "popular culture" perhaps seems obvious. Noted author and lecturer Gary Day, however states that: Popular culture covers so vast an area that contact with it cannot be avoided...it is easily accessible and involves mass participation [and] it is the mythology which gives meaning to society and through which society understands itself.1 Popular culture "is made by the people, not produced xGary Day, Readings In Popular Culture. (New York: St. Martin's Press, 1990), 1. 1 by the culture industry."2 In his book, Understanding Popular Culture. John Fiske states that "'the people' is not a stable sociological category:"3 The people, the popular, the popular forces, are a shifting set of allegiances that cross all social categories; various individuals belong to different popular formations at different times, often moving between them quite fluidly.4 "The people," according to Fiske, are described "in terms of [their] felt collectivity [not] in terms of external sociological factors such as class or race."5 In a country as large and diverse as the United States, the concept of "the people" becomes difficult to define. With the rise of "multiculturalism" has come an increasing awareness of the diverse racial and ethnic compositions of the United States. Various racial and ethnic groups (most notably African-American, Latino- American, and Asian-American) have distinct histories, both in the "Old World" and in the "New World," and a distinct value system for each is only now being recognized and celebrated. Until very recently it was only the history and value system of white middle-class Americans that comprised "popular culture." For example the creators of the three 2John Fiske, Understanding Popular Culture, (Boston: Unwin Hyman, 1989), 24. 3Ibid., 24. ‘Ibid. 5Ibid. musicals that have been studied were all products of white middle-class homes. Their creations reflect that particular value system. Musical theatre is often referred to as one of the only truly American art forms.6 Its development stemmed from several different European sources but by the early decades of the twentieth century it became an American expression of popular thinking. Christian Mendenhall, author of American Musical Comedy From 1943 to 1964: A Theoretical Investigation Of Its Ritual Function, states that "Musicals seem to ritualize a very specific area of human experience which has been termed 'The American Dream7 by historians and sociologists.117 Mendenhall goes on to say that the book musical symbolized the world view of one particular society in one particular historical moment. It ritualized the moral universe by which white middle-class American society... judged its acts and identity. Though tied to the culture of one class in the society this moral universe was considered as a national self-concept and named the 'American Dream.78 Michael T. Marsden of the Popular Culture Association has espoused: If popular culture is a reflection of our society, as indeed it is, then the products it produces can be said 6Deems Taylor, foreword to The World Of Musical Comedy by Stanley Green, (New York: Da Capo Press, 1980), ix. 7Christian Dean Mendenhall, American Musical Comedy From 1943 to 1964: A Theoretical Investigation Of Its Ritual Functionf (Evanston, IL: Northwestern University, 1988), 2. 8Ibid., 31. to be mirrors of that society. The mirrored images may be somewhat distorted, but the image will be generally accurate. We can know a people by what they consume, and we are what we enjoy.9 That the three shows selected for this thesis were "consumed11 is undeniable. Of Thee I Sina had a run of 441 performances in its Broadway premiere, an extraordinary run for its day.10 Oklahoma had a run of 2,245 performances, the longest run to that point in history.11 Company was performed 690 times, extraordinary for the early 1970's.12 While these figures seem very different, they represent extraordinary runs for each of their respective times. The musicals chosen for this thesis represent popular thought and culture of very specific times in American history. The creators of these works were products of a particular system of beliefs and so their ideas reflect the times in which they lived and worked. An analysis of the three musicals helps in understanding aspects of American attitudes and values, as well as the development of musical theatre. 9Donald Lazere, American Media and Mass Culture. (Berkeley: University of California Press, 1987), 1. 10Gerald Bordman, American Musical Theatre. A Chronicle. (New York: Oxford University Press, 1978), 441. “ Ibid., 536. “ Craig Zadan, Sondheim and Co.. (New York: Harper and Row, Publishers, 1989), 399. CHAPTER II THE ORIGINS OF THE AMERICAN MUSICAL THEATRE This study analyzes a contemporary American form of musical theatre where the "book" is the predominant structural entity. This form was initiated in 1927 with Showboat by Jerome Kern and Oscar Hammerstein II and continues to be one of the major formats for musical theatre. In order to understand the roots of the "book musical," it is necessary to examine first the three forms of musical theatre that were instrumental to its development - operetta, the musical revue, and musical comedy. Operetta is a light form of entertainment which is either satirical, sentimental, frivolous, or all three. Its story is told with music and only limited dialogue. The United States inherited the operetta from the United Kingdom and from Austria through performances on various stages in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. According to musical theatre author Julian Mates, "part of the joy in these works lies in the musical satire of grand 5 opera, though part is in the delight with the music itself."13 The "wit, the satire, the absurd plots and nonsensical moments" all contributed to their success.14 The English contribution to the development of the American operetta was largely due to W.